So I have two commanders. There's Conal, the Old Guy, and then there's the New Guy. I started the New Guy out to play through the early game again – which was loads of fun, one of the most fun times, I think – and the advantage of playing the two of them is that they can do vastly different things in very different places. Except that from time to time they cooperate, and they end up doing pretty much the same thing for awhile. That's not as much fun. But now and then you have to take one for the BGS team, right?
Conal has been knocking around for a lot longer, of course, and he's run all kinds of missions for all kinds of factions even though, like New Guy, he's Alliance. He never took a rank mission from the Feds or the Empire because... well. He wouldn't, would he?
But while boosting the influence of a local Fed faction in order to pull influence away from someone else, Conal took a rank mission because it was the fastest way to do that. And when it was done, he had enough rank rep to put him 100% of the way to the next rank. The next day he did the same thing again, and now he has 100% of the rep needed to unlock the rank after that one. He'd been accruing reputation for so long, without ever cashing it in, that now he was getting these promotions without even wanting them. Right?
New Guy thought this was interesting.
This is the part where you're going to take a step backwards, with your hands out, and look for the guys in the white jackets. I don't mind.
New Guy made a bet. He bet that Conal had enough stored reputation that if he just took the rank missions, and did nothing else for the Feds, he had enough rep stored up to make Rear Admiral. Which would be hilarious. And Conal took that bet.
So now whenever Conal comes back to the bubble he pops over to Fed space and looks around for easy rank missions. Every time he's taken one he's still had 100% of the rep to get the next. Today he just became an Ensign, and whenever the next mission drops he'll make Lieutenant. I have no idea if New Guy is right. I don't know how far this will go.
In itself, this is not that interesting. Because what makes a bet interesting is the stakes. And there's really only one thing a commander can bet... only one important thing.
That's right. They bet a mug.
You will have seen the flaw in this plan. Whoever loses the bet, I am going to have to make the Hutton Run again.
It's okay, I guess: I've got books.
Conal has been knocking around for a lot longer, of course, and he's run all kinds of missions for all kinds of factions even though, like New Guy, he's Alliance. He never took a rank mission from the Feds or the Empire because... well. He wouldn't, would he?
But while boosting the influence of a local Fed faction in order to pull influence away from someone else, Conal took a rank mission because it was the fastest way to do that. And when it was done, he had enough rank rep to put him 100% of the way to the next rank. The next day he did the same thing again, and now he has 100% of the rep needed to unlock the rank after that one. He'd been accruing reputation for so long, without ever cashing it in, that now he was getting these promotions without even wanting them. Right?
New Guy thought this was interesting.
This is the part where you're going to take a step backwards, with your hands out, and look for the guys in the white jackets. I don't mind.
New Guy made a bet. He bet that Conal had enough stored reputation that if he just took the rank missions, and did nothing else for the Feds, he had enough rep stored up to make Rear Admiral. Which would be hilarious. And Conal took that bet.
So now whenever Conal comes back to the bubble he pops over to Fed space and looks around for easy rank missions. Every time he's taken one he's still had 100% of the rep to get the next. Today he just became an Ensign, and whenever the next mission drops he'll make Lieutenant. I have no idea if New Guy is right. I don't know how far this will go.
In itself, this is not that interesting. Because what makes a bet interesting is the stakes. And there's really only one thing a commander can bet... only one important thing.
That's right. They bet a mug.
You will have seen the flaw in this plan. Whoever loses the bet, I am going to have to make the Hutton Run again.
It's okay, I guess: I've got books.
Last edited: